'I forgot my daughter's birthday - it led to a diagnosis that has changed my life forever

ANDY PAUL has never forgotten any of his children’s milestones, but when he opened his Facebook page and saw an alert saying it was his daughter’s birthday, he had absolutely no recollection of it.

- By RUTH MOSALSKI

Luckily, it was early in the day and he could cover his tracks by popping to Asda and buying her a card. But it was the latest little blip in his memory, and that made him worry.

He made an appointment with his GP and was referred to a memory clinic, where he was asked to draw a clock.

But, try as he might, he couldn't remember where to put the number 12. A brain scan then followed, after which he was told he had Alzheimer's disease.

He was just 60.

Before then, he thought it was just part of getting older, but with the diagnosis came the warning he probably had between five and eight years to live.

He is now 66 and five years on from his diagnosis.

He had put forgetting names, or spellings, down to getting older.

"I've never been the brightest star in the sky when it comes to putting pen to paper, but I seem to have just lost the ability to spell anything. Basic words... it came as a bit of a shock," he said.

It dawned on him it was more than getting older.

"I was forgetting dates and I couldn’t remember actually basic things like people's names - people I had known for a long time.

"I remember my kids’ names still, but even now when I go out I say: 'What's his name?'"

His overriding feeling when he struggled to spell a word or remember a name was one of frustration, he said.

"After getting the diagnosis, I thought: 'Well, I can’t argue with technology - I've had the scans and I won't beat this, because you won't beat it, but I've got to cope with it."

In the years since his diagnosis, his symptoms have worsened.

He now relies on the help of apps or Alexa for any spellings, and his body shakes to such a degree he has had to change his life.

It stops him doing day-to-day tasks and he is having to learn to adapt and ask for help.